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Trustees, Friends, & Foundations |
February 2024 |  |
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Welcome to the Trustees, Friends, & Foundations Newsletter!
A monthly update on items relevant to those
who work as or with Library Trustees, Friends, and Foundations.
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| From February 19, 2024
When politics come for literacy, how do libraries ensure it’s the kids who win?
There may be no more crucial issue that bridges librarianship and education than literacy. According to the National Literacy Institute, 40 percent of students across the nation cannot read at a basic level, a statistic that becomes more dire when factoring in class: 70 percent of low-income fourth graders cannot read at a basic level...
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| From February 12, 2024
Most library measures passed in 2023, but the year also saw confusingly worded ballots and little new funding.
Election year 2023 marked a significant moment for libraries on the ballot, with a return to pre-COVID numbers of operating levy renewals and building bonds, but also a marked increase in “upside-down” library elec-tions that can confuse voters. While a high number of renewals passed, there were few ballot measures for new funding. In the face of opposition from would-be book banners and censors, several libraries were on the ballot for critical measures that would radically change their governance, or even force them to close... |
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Sign Up with the Virginia Library Association as an Advocate! |
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Click HERE and sign up for the VLA Advocacy Center Mailing List to make sure you're receiving Virginia action alerts and updates on policy issues related to the library field. This will help you keep abreast of legislation that could affect your local library and community.
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UNITED FOR LIBRARIES RESOURCES |
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Virginia library staff and stakeholders (folks like
you!) have access to a whole host of resources from United for Libraries.
Click to get the CHEAT SHEET signed up and in.
| Already signed up? Click HERE to access everything through the ALA eLearning Platform! |
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Media Crisis Communications for Trustees & Friends
Tuesday, March 12, 2024 -- 2:00p-3:00p
Is your library’s Board of Trustees and/or Friends of the Library group prepared for a crisis? How can you support your library’s communications policies and procedures? This session, presented by longtime senior communications and marketing executive Kathleen McEvoy, will go over how to develop a solid communication plan, what to know about working with the media, tips on communicating the library’s value, how to respond to inquiries about book bans/censorship, and more. This program will offer tips for board members and Friends, as well as those who work with them. |
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SAVE THE DATE -- United for Libraries Virtual 2024 Tuesday, July 30 - Thursday, August 1, 2024 -- 11:00a- 4:00p
FREE FOR ALL VIRGINIA LIBRARY STAFF, TRUSTEES, FRIENDS, and FOUNDATION MEMBERS
This interactive three-day virtual event will feature expert speakers on current topics facing library Trustees, Friends, Foundations, and staff who work with them. Programming runs from 11:00 am Eastern to approximately 4:00 pm Eastern daily with scheduled breaks. Registrants may participate in some or all program sessions live, and/or watch recordings on-demand.
Participate in live Q&A sessions with presenters. Network with colleagues across the country in roundtable discussions. Enjoy exclusive access to keynote speakers and authors. Receive a certificate of attendance (for live participation or on-demand viewing). |
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| Convert Supporters with Powerful Landing Pages | With great landing pages, your donors, volunteers and supporters are 10 times more likely to donate, sign up, register or engage with your nonprofit.
In this session, we’ll share real-world landing page examples that increase conversions and what we’ve learned from studying hundreds of nonprofits and their landing page designs...
(Occurs 2.22.24 - 12p EST) |
| Register Here
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Build the Board You Need |
Join us to learn practical strategies for creating a board that will move your organization forward. In this course, we’ll cover the board’s role, and what your organization needs from its board members. We will explore ways to find the right board members to serve your nonprofit at its current stage. We will also discuss how to create positive relationships with and within the board, and how to navigate the common challenges that arise with boards. Whether you’re an executive director, board member, or development professional, this course will help you plan for a healthy sustainable organization...
(Occurs 2.22.24 - 2p) |
| Register Here
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| Fundraise Smarter, Not Harder - How to Identify High Value Fundraising Tasks |
Small teams, shoestring budgets, and ambitious targets - nonprofit fundraising can feel overwhelming. In this workshop, you'll learn a practical task prioritization framework to help you identify and focus on high-value fundraising tasks while delegating or streamlining lower-value tasks. This framework will empower you to make strategic decisions about where to invest your time and energy to maximize your organization's fundraising success.
(Occurs 2.27.24 - 11a) |
| Register Here
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Trustee, Friends, and Foundation members have access to the Library of Virginia's Niche Academy, a place for online learning.
Please note, if you register with a non-library issued e-mail address, someone from the Library of Virginia will follow up with you to confirm that you are affiliated with a Virginia library before you can access the content. |
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Click on the image to learn more about each title, and then use your local library to request them from the Library of Virginia.
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| February 12, 2024
In the way back yonder year of 2020, the Fairfax County Public Library’s (FCPL) Board of Trustees accomplished something nearly unprecedented. In the County’s advertised budget, which was released in early February 2020, they had advocated and won support for an almost $1 million dollar increase for the library to provide additional weekend service hours and a bump to the materials budget. Then along came March of that year and the start of pandemic. We all remember too well that feeling of uncertainty as layoffs rippled throughout the country and governmental budgets were impacted even as human services needs skyrocketed. The County quickly released a revised budget which maintained baseline dollars for all departments and agencies. Not a dramatic reduction thankfully, but certainly no more $1 million dollar increase which the Library Board had worked so hard to achieve...
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| February 7, 2024
On Wednesday, January 30th, six students, teachers Stacey Lee and Leah Fisher, School Principal Shelly Lipton, Vice Principal Dawn Taylor and members of the Friends of Northumberland Public Library joined Jane Blue, Northumberland Public Library Director and Arthur Newman Library Community Outreach Supervisor at Northumberland Middle School as the Friends delivered 390 books for the One School, One Read Program kick off.
One School One Read was started in 2002 in Richmond as a family literacy program and has expanded to suit district and state-wide needs throughout Virginia. The program at Northumberland Public Schools, started 11 years ago by teacher Stacey Lee, moved from the elementary school to the middle school in recent years... |
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| February 16, 2024
When Vienna's Patrick Henry Library is renovated, it will reopen with a new name honoring a family's legacy to establish an integrated library.
The Fairfax County Public Library's Board of Trustees voted Wednesday to rename Patrick Henry Library to the Vienna-Carter Library. The name honors the Carter family, a multiracial family with roots in Vienna and Fairfax County history. One member of the family, William McKinley Carter was a charter member of the Fairfax County NAACP and helped establish an integrated county library branch in the Town of Vienna... |
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"If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries...We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms. Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. For the Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our liberty."
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Papers of John F. Kennedy. Pre-Presidential Papers. Senate Files, Box 902, "Cleveland Press Book and Author luncheon, Cleveland, Ohio, 26 April 1959." John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.
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This newsletter is brought to you by the Library Development & Networking Division of the Library of Virginia. Funding for this is provided through the Virginia General Assembly and the Institute for Museum and Library Studies (IMLS).
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